Establishes the State Office of Archaeology

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 1749
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR MCCREERY .
7285S.03I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To amend chapter 640, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to the state office of
archaeology.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 640, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1
one new section, to be known as section 640.2000, to read as 2
follows:3
640.2000. 1. There is hereby established within the 1
department of natural resources the "State Office of 2
Archaeology" which shall work in conjunction with the state 3
historic preservation office, established under chapter 253, 4
and shall be responsible for establishing, implementing, and 5
administering federal and state programs or plans for 6
statewide archaeological and paleontological preservation. 7
2. The director of the department shall designate a 8
director of the office who shall serve as the state 9
archeological officer. 10
3. At a minimum, the director of the office shall be a 11
professional archaeologist, as defined in section 194.400. 12
4. The duties of the office shall include, but shall 13
not be limited to: 14
(1) Establishing, implementing, and administering a 15
statewide plan for archaeological and paleontological 16
preservation; 17
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(2) Providing oversight over any archaeological site 18
that is at least one hundred and fifty years old. If any 19
such site is deemed to be holding significant archaeological 20
value or if there is interest from the land owner on whose 21
real property the site is located, the office shall conduct 22
a survey of the site and develop steps to minimize damage to 23
such site; 24
(3) Ensuring that all federal laws are followed 25
pertaining to archaeological and paleontological protection 26
of archaeological sites; 27
(4) Working in conjunction with the state historic 28
preservation office to oversee the implementation of 29
sections 194.400 to 194.410; 30
(5) Providing guidance, research assistance, and 31
technical information concerning the archaeological heritage 32
of the state; 33
(6) Coordinating with the state historic preservation 34
office for the maintenance of the state's archaeological 35
site files; 36
(7) Serving as the official repository of the state's 37
archaeological artifacts, including inventorying, analyzing, 38
and documenting the state's archaeological and 39
paleontological resources, and assessing the location of 40
such resources, including quantity and cultural significance 41
of such resources; 42
(8) Working in coordination with any other state 43
agency on the preservation of archaeological sites; and 44
(9) Entering into agreements and cooperative efforts 45
with the following governmental entities concerning 46
archaeological preservation: 47
(a) The Federal Highway Administration; 48
(b) The United States Department of Commerce; 49
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(c) The United States Department of Interior; 50
(d) The United States Department of Agriculture; 51
(e) The United States Department of Defense; or 52
(f) Any other governmental agency interested in 53
archaeological preservation. 54
5. The department shall promulgate rules to implement 55
the provisions of this section. Any rule or portion of a 56
rule, as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is 57
created under the authority delegated in this section shall 58
become effective only if it complies with and is subject to 59
all of the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, 60
section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are 61
nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the 62
general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay 63
the effective date, or to disapprove and annul a rule are 64
subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of 65
rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or adopted after 66
August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void. 67
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